Beta impressions: 'Destiny' shows shades of 'Halo'

Video game "Destiny" will be released in September 2014. The beta has opened for those who pre-order the game.
Activision/Bungie

Unsurprisingly, Bungie's latest shooter steals cues from the company's former sci-fi blockbuster "Halo," but offers enough new content and multiplayer finesse to give "Destiny" a fresh flavor of its own.

The vehicles, weapons, and waves of alien enemies in the game's beta likely felt familiar to gamers familiar with the "Halo" franchise. "Destiny's" scout rifles feel and function similar to battle rifles in the more recent games of the "Halo" series and the sparrow, the primary mode of ground transportation in "Destiny," feels similar to Halo Ghosts in movement and control.

The tried-and-true formula has worked well for Bungie in the past — and it's not a bad thing they've stuck to the basic template. "Halo's" popularity grew because the gameplay was fun, so it only makes sense for Bungie to keep and grow the enjoyment — and grow it they have.

The game "Borderlands" comes to mind when discussing "Destiny's" weapons choices. Each weapon looted from enemies or treasure chests has unique damage types, such as explosive or elemental, and can upgrade in accuracy and damage the more use it receives.

Gear and unique armor for each of the three player class types, Hunter, Titan and Warlock, offer similar use bonuses and unique "special" characteristics, such as the ability to hold more ammunition. Each class also has unique armor slots to provide a custom look between classes and players.

Standout multiplayer

What really sets "Destiny" apart and gives it a fresh feel is its multiplayer, which blends the drop-in, drop-out style of "Borderlands" with MMORPG elements from games like "World of Warcraft" (but without the monthly fees).

Players start out in a world hub known as The Tower, which feels akin to WoW cities with armor and weapon merchants, quest givers, class trainers, and other real-world players rustling about. From The Tower, players can select planets (and moons) to quest on, explore open worlds on their own — or join other players in strikes, which resemble WoW dungeons and contain multiple bosses for teams of three players to fight through in the never-ending quest for better loot and XP.

The combat and boss encounters are immensely fun and satisfying. Only one strike was available in the beta, but it offered players a glimpse of what's to come. Each of the three boss encounters in the strike felt unique and were designed in such a way to ensure coordination and strategy between the two-to-three player team was paramount for success.

It left me wanting more and was engaging to the point where I did not feel bored repeating it — and actually desired to run through it more than once.

The strikes are just the beginning. Although not available in the beta, Bungie announced end-game raid-style encounters for up to six players that offer increased difficulty and better loot.

Of course, the public beta also gave a glimpse into "Destiny's" player-versus-player content, which seemed a mash-up of "Halo"-style shooting with "Titanfall" level design where getting vertical seemed just as important as ground control.

My strength has never been in PvP, and my character died more than lived in the few matches I played, which suggests skill, experience, and aim play a heavy role in success, but level design and sporadic vehicle placement meant I was able to contribute to my team's score despite being less skilled than other players.

But with the beta now over, my curiosity is piqued. The beta felt like Bungie was offering the game with training wheels, so it would be unfair to pass total judgment until the game releases in September, but I'm excited for the training wheels to come off.

"Destiny" releases Sept. 9 on PlayStation 3, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Xbox 360. While Xbox fans will find comfort and familiarity in portions of the games, Bungie's ability to launch on multiple platforms will give PlayStation fans an opportunity to hop into the action and see what they've been missing.

Editor's note: Beta was played on Xbox One/Xbox 360 for this review.

Phillip Bock is an education reporter with the Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter. Contact him at (920) 686-2966 or pbock@htrnews.com.